Political law links

UPDATED ARTICLE. An updated version of Steven Sholk’s invaluable article, “A Guide to Election Year Activities of Section 501(c)(3) Organizations,” has been published by Practising Law Institute as part of the course materials for the seminar, Tax Strategies for Corporate Acquisitions, Dispositions, Spin-Offs, Joint Ventures, Financings & Restructurings. The PDF is online here.

NEW SECRETARY. Examiner. “Sen. Mitch McConnell, who will assume the role of majority leader in 2015, has named longtime aide Julie Adams secretary of the Senate.”

CFROMNIBUS. RC. “An effort to ease limits on spending by party committees was among the late lingering issues as negotiations continued on legislation to keep the government funded past Thursday.”

MO: THE LIMITS OF REFORM. Politicmo.com. “Attorney General Chris Koster shrugged off questions on Monday about whether he supports efforts by U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill and others to reinstate campaign contributions in Missouri.”

MO: A FIRST. Stltoday.com. “In what is apparently a first in Missouri politics, conservative kingmaker Rex Sinquefield has given $1 million in a single donation to a single candidate.”

MT: COMPLAINT DISMISSED. Billings Gazette. “The state political practice commissioner has dismissed a Republican lawmaker’s complaint that Democratic Secretary of State Linda McCulloch improperly used public resources to solicit opposition to a ballot issue.”

VA: CFR ON AGENDA. Fauqiernow.com. “The council Tuesday also will conduct a public hearing on a proposal to adopt state campaign finance disclosure requirements.”

WA: JUDGE NAMED TO COMMISSION. Wenatcheeworld.com. “Former Chelan County Superior Court Judge John E. Bridges has a potential new job: Keeping campaign finance in Washington honest.”

WV: DEADLINE LOOMS. The Republic. “Lobbyists have less than a week to register with the West Virginia Ethics Commission for 2015.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

Mon. political law links

STATE OF CFR.  QCOnline.com.  “Ultimately, campaign finance reform initiatives lack the necessary public support, he said.”

BUFFETT EXCEPTION.  Omaha.com.  “Warren Buffett has said he wouldn’t contribute to third party political action committees but recently made his first donation to a so-called ‘super PAC,’ $25,000 to a group formed in case Hillary Clinton runs for president in 2016.”

FUNDRAISING BURDEN.  Kentucky.com.  “Here’s what it’s like to run for Congress: You sit in a small room for at least 30 hours a week and you stare out the window at a parking lot while calling hundreds of people to ask for money.”

FILING TIMING. HuffPo. “At least 19 federally registered super PACs received more than half of their contributions during this disclosure blackout period, according to campaign finance records disclosed on Thursday.”

CONTRIBUTIONS REFUNDED. Dailysabah.com. “A U.S. congressman, who gave a speech praising Fethullah Gülen in Congress, has returned donations worth thousands of dollars following allegations of money laundering and violations of federal regulations on campaign financing.”

MORE ON STATE AG’S.  NYT.    “Out of public view, corporate representatives and attorneys general are coordinating legal strategy and other efforts to fight federal regulations, according to a review of thousands of emails and court documents and dozens of interviews.”

AK:  GRADE FOR ALASKA.  Newsminer.com.   “The National Institute on Money in State Politics, which periodically releases tidbits of interesting information about state-level issues across the U.S., this week issued their report card for state laws on campaign finance disclosure.”

AZ:  RULE STRUCK.  Tuscon.com.  “A federal judge has voided state laws requiring groups to register before spending money on campaigns — and with it, the reports they’re supposed to file on who is behind all that cash.”

IL:  SUPER PAC BLAST.  WGNTV.com.  “The topic of discussion: ‘Chicago Forward.’ The super PAC is raising millions of dollars to support Emanuel and his city council allies.”

NM:  MANAGER DONATION.  Las Cruces Bulletin.  “A discussion about whether Doña Ana County employees should be allowed to make political contributions Tuesday, Dec. 2, prompted lone Republican Commissioner Ben Rawson to question whether the concern itself is politically motivated.”

NM:  AIMING AT DONOR.   USAT.  “The Missouri Democrat is quietly working with others in the state to put campaign finance limits on the ballot in 2016, a move that also raises fresh questions about her own plans for the next election.”

NY: STATE OF ETHICS. NYT. “Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat, abruptly shut the commission down as part of a budget deal with the State Legislature in March.”

WA: NEW MEAL LIMITS. The Olympian. “State Rep. Sam Hunt joked last week that Washington lawmakers might need a punch card to keep track of any lobbyist-paid meals they accept next year.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

Political law links

THE CFR-CROMNIBUS.  BillMoyers.com.  “Bloomberg BNA reports that ‘for now,’ Sen. Mitch McConnell has backed away from the strategy Paul Blumenthal describes below. But campaign reformers remain ;wary that the incoming Senate majority leader would renew efforts to roll back limits on campaign money when Republicans take over the Senate following the current, lame-duck session.'”

ONE LAST TIME.  Politico. “Senate Democrats are making one last try to bring their chamber’s campaign finance records into the 21st century, but their effort to attach to it a critical government funding bill will likely require them to make concessions to Republicans to succeed.”

DONORS AND PRO-CARSON PAC.  Christian Post.  “Dr. Ben Carson’s business manager urged conservative donors looking to give money to the 63-year-old neurosurgeon’s potential 2016 presidential campaign to be wary of donating to the widely-publicized unaffiliated super PAC called the National Draft Ben Carson for President Committee.”

COMPLAINT SHELVED.  CPI.  “A Republican Party plan to formally accuse Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., of illegally accepting pro bono legal services has fizzled, the Center for Public Integrity has learned.”

SEEKING TWO OFFICES PROSPECTS. Roll Call. “Plan A for Paul, which hasn’t panned out, was for Republicans to win control of the Kentucky General Assembly this fall and rewrite the statute to explicitly permit his dual aspirations.”

FL:  RALLY FOR REFORM.  WFSU.  “Bazzini wants to put campaign finance reform in the U.S. Constitution.”

MD:  NEW PAY TO PLAY DEVELOPMENTS.  Skadden.  “Amendments to Maryland’s pay-to-play law taking effect January 1, 2015, will impose burdensome contract reporting requirements for many companies.”

MN:  ALLEGATIONS IN COMPLAINT.  MPR.  “The Republican Party of Minnesota has filed a complaint with the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board that alleges the DFL party and Gov. Mark Dayton’s re-election operation illegally coordinated during the campaign.”

NJ:  COUNTY BROKE OWN RULES.  Press of AC.  “A Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday that Atlantic County’s government broke its own pay-to-play rules by giving a contract to an accounting firm that made political contributions to the county sheriff in his 2013 campaign for the state Senate.”

NY:  EYE ON ANTI-CARRIAGE GROUP.  NYDN.  “The Campaign Finance Board is investigating whether the animal-rights group leading the crusade against horse-drawn carriages helped candidates in last year’s city election in violation of campaign finance rules.”

NY:  CUOMO ADVANTAGE.  Newsday.com.  “Democratic Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has more left in his campaign account than Republican challenger Rob Astorino raised in the entire gubernatorial race, state election records show.”

WY:  NONCOMPLIANCE OPPOSED.  Rapid City Journal.  “It’s time authorities crack down on candidates and PAC officials who don’t meet campaign finance filing deadlines. Such information isn’t just nice to have; it’s crucial to voters and hence critical to ensure honest elections.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.